For Mother’s Day

I’ve said it before, but for those who didn’t read that post, I have never put my mum in any of my books, but I have often put a piece of my mum in a book. She is the woman who would say that their daughter ‘wasn’t brought up to be cremated’ (Ellen’s mum in Things I Should Have Said and Done) she is the one who makes the best mashed potatoes in the world (Susan’s mum in Ribbons in Her Hair) and the one who would always welcome back a prodigal son no matter what (Tom and Robert’s mum in Not My Brother’s Keeper). There is nothing about her in An Uncomplicated Man, but I don’t think she’d mind that because there are some really horrible people in that book. A part of her makes an appearance in my current work in progress, which has the working title of TCWM, but more about that if it ever sees the light of day.

To celebrate Mother’s Day here in the UK this weekend, the kindle version of Ribbons in Her Hair will be reduced to just 99p (Saturday morning to Monday morning). I chose this one because it is about the complicated relationship that mothers and daughters often have.

“Didn’t want to put this one down. A story about family dynamics and the changing times between generations. Explores the story mainly using the different perspective of a mother and her daughter….” 5 star Amazon review.

“I started reading this thinking it would be a nice pick up, read a bit and dip in and out book.
But I couldn’t put it down and I read it in one sitting late into the night. Very enjoyable and engrossing.” 5 star Amazon Review. Kindle versions can be sent to someone else, so if you think your mum might like a little gift this weekend, maybe this is just the thing.

My Book of the Month – February 2024

It was quite an easy decision this month and my book for February is:

FRANK AND RED by Matt Coyne.

Frank is now the embodiment of a grumpy old man. When his wife was alive, he was sociable and outgoing, but since her death he has retreated into the confines of his home. Only going into the garden if he absolutely has to, Frank lives his life, for the most part, inside the four walls of his house. Estranged from his only son, Frank’s only company is the ghost of his dead wife. Even his neighbours don’t bother him, though that is something he is grateful for. He doesn’t want to be bothered. He just wants to be left alone.

But then his next-door neighbour moves out and Red and his mum move in.

Six years old and bright as a button, Red has problems of his own. After his mum and dad separated, he and his mum have had to move away from his old house and everything he knew. He misses his friends; he misses his old school and, even though he constantly lets him down, Red misses his dad.

When Red first encounters Frank, he is determined to get to know him. Why is the man next door so grumpy? Why does he insist on ignoring Red? Red makes it his mission to find out. He refuses to be ignored.

This is a story of an unlikely friendship that is a total joy to read. If I could give this book 10 stars, I would. A definite contender for ‘Book of the Year.’

Matt was born and raised in Sheffield, which gets him a thumbs up from me, and FRANK AND RED is his debut novel.

New Look All Round

New covers and the new price of just £2.49 on kindle

I Do Not Love Lucy

To quote from a review of An Uncomplicated Man got me thinking. “…the three main characters are horrible human beings, who I want nothing but bad things to happen to,” seems harsh until you look at them objectively.

Daniel wasn’t always a bad person. In fact, he was just the opposite before the book began. He was a mild-mannered bank manager, a loyal husband, an uncomplicated man – and then he met Arthur Braithwaite.

They would never have crossed paths if Daniel’s boss hadn’t ‘asked him for a favour.’ A favour that he couldn’t refuse. A favour involving Arthur Braithwaite, a local businessman whose middle name is ‘Dodgy.’ Along with his beautiful daughter Lucy, they manipulate Daniel to get what they want, which, in this case, is access to money.

Lucy is the real driving force behind the manipulation, using every asset she has to keep Daniel where they want him and she does this without caring who might get hurt.

So, Daniel is weak, but that’s no excuse because he knew what he was doing and he could have stopped the train and got off if he’d wanted to. He just didn’t want to. Not enough, anyway.

 Arthur is basically a criminal. He uses people to get what he wants.

And Lucy, well, I’m not going to lie, she is hideous. Without any shadow of a doubt, she is the least favourite character that I’ve ever created. She is manipulative and borderline evil. If I knew her, I’d detest her. That said, I really enjoyed creating her – the minx.

So, all in all, I would say that I completely agree with the (5 star) reviewer, the three main characters, really are horrible human beings.

AN UNCOMPLICATED MAN will be available shortly on kindle.

My Book Of The Month – January 2024

I’ve read some really good books in January but, in my opinion, the best book I read this month is:

IN THE HANDS OF WOMEN by Jane Loeb Rubin.

In the early years of the twentieth century, Dr Hannah Isaacson is an obstetrician at Johns Hopkins Medical School. One of just a handful of female doctors, Hannah, is appalled by the standard of care that women receive, especially those from the immigrant communities, and she makes it her mission to improve things. She wants to educate women about their health choices, but in a male dominated world where providing contraception is illegal, she has to deal with more and more botched abortions instead. Dr Isacson works alongside the real-life advocate for women’s sex education, Margaret Sanger, to get her message across but sadly, in the early 1900s, it was men that ruled the world and they have a battle on their hands.

But there is so much more than that to this book as it touches on subjects like the appalling conditions that some immigrants live in, the suffragette movement, and the misogyny and racism that Hannah and others faces on a daily basis.
The subject matter is, at times, disturbing, but is necessary to convey the severity of the situation that women found themselves in. While this is a work of fiction, it is based on facts.
The characters are well rounded and believable, and the book flows beautifully. I don’t want to call it an easy read because, as I have said, the subject matter is dark at times, but it is a page turner.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Following a diagnosis of ovarian cancer Jane’s research into the familial links associated with the disease led her to the discovery of her great grandmother who had been an immigrant in New York and had died of a ‘woman’s disease.’ How would a woman have coped with such a diagnosis in 1866? That and the ultra-conservative reproductive laws form the basis of this book.

Jane lives with her husband David in Northern New Jersey

In the Hands of Women is published by Level Best Books

You can read my reviews of all the books I read on goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/59045689?ref=nav_mybooks

The Best Book I Read In 2023

2023 was a good year in terms of the books I read. Sixty-one read, and I gave a five star review to thirty-six of them. Three got three star reviews, and the rest were fours.

After careful consideration (over a cup of tea and a Hobnob) I have decided that the runners up in the “Best Book I Read” category for 2023, the runners up were,

“The Vanishing of Margaret Small” by Neil Alexander https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5482988417

and

“Go As a River” by Shelley Read.https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5437321864

And so to the winner in the “Best Book I Read in 20203” goes to – drum roll, please –

“A Kestrel For a Knave” by Barry Hines https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5985667219

looking forward to the books I find in 2024.

A Post Christmas Post

So, that’s Christmas over with and we are in that week that ends with a new year. The week where you don’t have a clue what day it is and even the dog’s sick of the sight of turkey.

Personal tip here, turkey sandwiches are OK for a couple of days but after that, put it in a pie and bung it in the freezer. Chuck in a few left-over vegetables to use them up and there’s always some cranberry sauce left in the jar so that goes in too. Out of sight, out of mind. Anyway, the new year.

It seems to me the New Year as a celebration is a bit like Marmite, which for anyone not familiar with the product, means you either love it or hate it. Personally, I hate it, which is also pretty much how I feel about Marmite. All that false bonhomie isn’t for me, thank you very much. Why anyone would feel the need to kiss people, they don’t even like just because it’s the turning of the year is beyond me. If it’s your thing, I hope you have a wonderful time. Me? I’ll be at home sharing a bottle of Chianti with Mr Mc while we watch a couple of films (my choice this year and I have a classic combination planned) followed by night caps all round at midnight before I throw someone out of the door so they can ‘first foot.’ It used to be one of our sons, but usually it’s Mr Mc now. That said, it wouldn’t be the first time that the dog has done the honours. After that, a bit of Hootananny and off to bed.

However, while I’m not a fan of New Year celebrations, I am a fan of a new year. The new year is like a clean sheet of paper. There’s nothing written yet and anything is possible.

The first (and possibly only) thing that I’m putting on my clean sheet of paper is that before April (my birthday month so not as random as it might appear) I will republish An Uncomplicated Man (aka the book that no-one’s read) on kindle. No, to be fair, a few people have read it, but I bet they don’t run into double figures. It’s a long story that I won’t bore you with. It is still available in paperback if Headline has any copies left, but you haven’t been able to download a copy on kindle for a couple of years. All that will change in the early part of next year.

Who knows? Maybe there’ll even be something completely new, though I’m not ready to commit that to my clean piece of paper yet.

Happy New Year everyone.

x

My Book of the Month, December 2023

A KESTREL FOR A KNAVE by Barry Hines.

A Kestrel For a Knave is one of those books that I’ve meant to read for a long time, but just never got around to — until now. What a book.

Billy Caspar is a loner, an outcast. His father is long gone, he’s bullied, and he has no friends. To be honest, he doesn’t have a lot going for him. Until he finds Kes, a kestrel chick.

Billy raises her by hand and trains her to fly free and then to come back to him. It’s not an easy process, far from it, but Billy does it and finally he has something to be proud of. There is a bond and a mutual trust between the boy and the bird.

At last, Billy has a friend.

The outlook for Billy isn’t good. He’s about to leave school and without qualifications, his job prospects are poor. He doesn’t have much of a future, but at least he has Kes and she gives him hope good things can happen.

When Billy speaks, he speaks in a Yorkshire accent, and the dialogue reflects that. Those not familiar with the accent might take a while to get used to it, but if, like me, it’s your native tongue; the dialogue flows beautifully. Listening to Billy, I was there with him, on the council estate in the ‘60s.

This book is raw and cruel, but absolutely real. It is an honest evaluation of how life was in those days, which some may find difficult to read. But it’s authentic, and that makes it powerful.  

Barry Hines was born in Barnsley in 1939. Best known for writing A Kestrel For a Knave, Barry also wrote plays for both television and radio. In 1984 he wrote the Bafta award winning Threads, which tells the story of a nuclear attack on Sheffield. Barry died in March 2016.

A Seasonal Wish

I’m currently reading the Charles Dickens classic, A Christmas Carol. It’s not the first time I’ve read it. I read it every year and for me, it’s as much a part of Christmas as the tree and the turkey.

But it’s not just the book. We have four film versions of A Christmas Carol/ Scrooge that we watch every year too. Scrooge the Patrick Stewart version kicks off the Christmas build up in early December…

and Scrooged (Bill Murray) caps it off on Christmas Eve.

The other two films are versions starring Alistair Sim’s (all-time classic black and white)…

and Albert Finney’s musical extravaganza which are both excellent in their own right.

Charles Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol in 1843 and here we are 180 years later and he’s still influencing the way some of celebrate Christmas. How’s that for longevity?

Mr Mc would like to think that he is like Ebenezer Scrooge, all mean and grumpy, but he really isn’t. Me? I’m Fred or Bob Cratchit and, to quote Belle from the book, ‘content to be so.’

For now though, I’d just like to take this opportunity to say thank you to everyone who has read my ramblings (on this blog or elsewhere) – it’s good to know that I’m not talking to myself. If you have bought one of my books or borrowed one from the library, thank you. Your support means the world to me.

I will blog with my book of the month/year at the end of December, but until then, I hope your Christmas season is everything that you want it to be. If, like me, you are a fan of nostalgia, or, if you prefer something else entirely, I hope you have the time that you want. Also, and without meaning to get political here, if you get the chance to help out someone who is struggling to find their Christmas magic, help them out if you can. After all, isn’t that what Dickens was writing about all those years ago

Happy Christmas.